The Williams F1 Team have said they are waiting on Mercedes to make a decision on George Russell’s future before finalising their 2022 driver line-up.
Russell has been strongly linked with a move to the Silver Arrows for next season, and Valtteri Bottas is reportedly being considered by Williams as his replacement.
READ: Wolff Confident Bottas & Russell Will Have Strong Options If Miss Out On Mercedes Seat
Williams team principal Jost Capito has said that Russell will be offered a new deal should Mercedes decide to retain Bottas or replace him with a driver other than the young Brit.
“For us, it’s not even worthwhile thinking about it because that is a Mercedes decision. If they take him, they take him. If not, he will stay,” Capito said in an interview with GP Fans.
“At the moment, he would like to stay if he doesn’t get the Mercedes call because he likes the team. He sees how it’s going forward. If he doesn’t go to Mercedes, we will be more than happy to keep him, of course.
“But there’s nothing we can do now. We are just focusing on the season, race by race and go from there.
“It’s massively impressive how George handles the situation. He doesn’t get taken away by ‘do I have to wait? When is the call? Do I have to get it? Do I not get it?’ He is so cool on that and focused on what he has to do for Williams. This is really very impressive,” he added.
Continuing, Capito revealed that several other drivers have reached out to him to express their interest in landing a Williams seat should a vacancy for 2022 crop up.
“Not me speaking to others,” Capito said when asked if he has been in touch with other drivers.
“Quite a lot of drivers have contacted me and I explain to them the situation.
“At the moment, there’s nothing more to discuss because I can’t sign any driver.
“We can’t make any decision as long as there is a chance to keep George. It’s very simple. The George situation has to be solved and then we can react,” he concluded.